So the name of this blog IS, after all, the “Blue Eyed Buddhist”. People think of Buddhists as being these serene, calm, cool, happy people, right? That’s a common stereotype?

Well, on my wandering around the web, I came across this little tidbit leading into a newspaper story about “smocking” (which is the art of embroidery on pleats and has been around for a couple of thousand years)…

Eileen Stein once asked a Buddhist friend why she was so serene, thinking that perhaps the woman might reveal how she had reached some particular stage of enlightenment.

The Buddhist thought for a moment, then said: “I crochet.”

This tickles my funny bone, because I thought that Buddhists would have a magical formula for hitting enlightenment. Well, we happen to believe that we do, and most of the Buddhists I hang with are on average happier, healthier people than the average Joe, but I don’t think that it’s something mystical.

The point is that the Buddhist lady in the story had a practice that helped her be calm and reach a stage of enlightenment.

Now, our theology teaches us in the SGI that our faith will work for everyone. That’s pretty standard religious stuff, isn’t it? I mean, would you really listen to a religion that officially says “well, you know, one religion is as good as another, we’d like it if you picked us but we’re really nothing special”? Odds are nope. Pretty much every religion worth its salt says “this is the way to heaven/enlightenment/wealth/riches/fabulous babes/whatever, and all the other religions are snake oil salesmen”.

Oh, they might pay lip service to the idea that other religions have worth, but ultimately pretty much all religions think that they have the True Key and everyone else is wrong.

Well, and maybe I’m a big heathen and a bad Buddhist for saying so, but I think this is wrong. I think that sometimes it’s more important and will aid more people if they just have SOMETHING that leads them to that happy, calm peace of mind.

I happen to believe that my Buddhist practice does that. I think it’s pretty well captured the explanation of spirituality and how we operate and why we’re here and so forth. Ultimately, I think it describes the Truth that we’re all in the process of learning.

But you know what? I’d rather you be a happy Catholic than a miserable Buddhist. Or a happy agnostic, or a happy atheist. And while I’m frequently quite arrogant (hey, I’m an air traffic controller, I save lives and separate airplanes with the power of my mind) I would like to think that I’m not quite arrogant enough to declare that the ONLY way to becoming happy, serene and enlightened in this lifetime is through Buddhism.

It might be Catholicism, or Judaism, or Wicca or being agnostic but getting it out through writing or playing banjo or who knows what.

Heck, it might even be through crocheting.

Point being, find something. I offer my Buddhist experience, because it worked and works for me and I think it’s a good, solid path that will work for you, too. I think it’s the Truth. But again, find something, and be happy.

Final food for thought- to me the height of arrogance is to declare that one’s own religion is the Ultimate Truth and therefore you are going to force everyone into that religion. Taking that next step- to setting oneself above everyone else and jamming the religion down their throats- is extremely rude to me. Not to mention dangerous- just look at what the radical religious right are doing to trash America, or their counterparts in the Middle East are doing to trash the entire non-Muslim world (and some of the Muslim world as well).

As if anyone needed more proof that the Republicans are a party of corrupt assholes, now we find out that not only was a Republican Congressman hitting on underaged House Pages, but that the leadership of the party knew about it and didn’t do anything.

What a bunch of assholes.

In other “dog bites man” news (ie, news that isn’t really very shocking “news”), it turns out that the Bush Administration has been in turmoil over Iraq and that pretty much everything they’ve presented publicly about it has been a pack of lies. They’re trying to blow off a new book by Bob Woodward, but they thought he was an excellent author when they liked what his previous two books had to say.

What a bunch of assholes.

Look, I can’t legally tell you candidates that you should go and donate money to. But even just 10 or 25 bucks donated to a candidate can make a big difference… so get involved in political campaigns and support good, solid candidates.

I’ll leave it to you to guess which party the solid ones are probably members of.

Well, millions of anchovies have beached themselves in Spain.

Personally, I’m not an anchovie guy. Blech. I’m not a seafood guy at all, actually, which is a little unusual for living in Seattle (we have some pretty good seafood around here).

I think it all kind of smells bad… so I can only imagine what that beach in Spain smells like. Bummer.

Here’s something for any conservatives (as if any actually read here) to chew on…

King George was all in favor of junking the “rule of law”. Not King George Bush- the King George that the American Revolution happened to.

How pathetic is it that we’ve sunk so low that we’re to a point where somewhere around half of our citizens don’t have a problem with torturing our enemies, or secret prisons, or snooping without a warrant, or the rule of law and a fair trial?

This is a sad day for America, folks.